The Observer, April 28, 2006
Volume XXXVIII, Issue 26
Free Speech Zone: Affirmative action based on discrimination
I would like to address two of Pieragastini's most ridiculous remarks from his last column. He mentioned that he was fearful that Minuteman volunteers would start shooting illegal immigrants and described them as "a vigilante force of trigger-happy bigots and racists who patrol the U.S.-Mexican Border in pickup trucks." Did Pieragastini forget the part about how these evil "bigots" impregnate their cousins at NASCAR races while donning blackface? The ACLU and other groups have had legal observers following the Minuteman Project. The most outrageous incident they uncovered was that several volunteers convinced an illegal immigrant to hold up a t-shirt and pose for a photograph… after they provided the man with milk and cereal because they feared for his health.
While the Minuteman Project volunteers have not executed anyone trying to enter the country illegally, Border Patrol Agents have been shot by illegals, dehydration and heat exposure have led to thousands of immigrant fatalities, and many illegals have been killed or enslaved by 'coyotes' who would take a human life before facing a criminal charge.
Pieragastini further lamented the "absurd prejudices" of people who oppose affirmative action. Whether one thinks it justifiable or not, current affirmative action policies are based on discrimination and prejudices. I'd prefer to set aside the theoretical debate about whether affirmative action can be justified by past events and focus on the practical side. Affirmative action in practice benefits a very small and generally wealthy segment of selected groups. This does not mesh with the common justifications of the policies. Furthermore, "beneficiaries" often suffer from the mismatch effect which results in higher rates of dropout and poor academic performance for the selected groups. Of course, this perpetuates negative stereotypes.
Affirmative action has been a boon for racists. No matter how unqualified one is for admission, employment, or a promotion, a racist can and likely will blame his failure on affirmative action. Worse yet, affirmative action may lead more reasonable people to follow a similar line of reasoning. It is easier to blame the system than to accept one's own shortcomings. For a critical analysis of affirmative action, I recommend Thomas Sowell's Affirmative Action around the World and Richard Sander's A Systemic Analysis of Affirmative Action in American Law Schools. But it will be easier for Pieragastini to renounce them as the works of racists from "Middle America" than to research and consider opposing viewpoints.
